DIRECTIONS
The Netherlands is a member of the European Union and the Schengen Agreement. In brief, a visa to any other signatory state of the Schengen Agreement is valid in the Netherlands too. No visa is required for citizens of other EU member states. In addition to EU citizens, the citizens of the following countries do not need a visa for entry into the Netherlands for periods of up to three months, with no work allowed:
Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Japan, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, , Monaco, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, San Marino, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, United States, Uruguay, Vatican City and Venezuela. The Chinese Special Administrative Regions of Macau and Hong Kong are also exempt.
Visas and long-term residence permits for non-EU nationals are handled by IND .
Also, there are no border controls between the Netherlands and other Schengen Agreement states, making travel less complicated. Keep in mind that some EU-states do not belong to the Schengen Agreement (like the United Kingdom and Ireland), while some non-EU-states do belong to it (like Norway and Iceland).
There are a number of ways to get into the Netherlands. From neighboring European countries, a drive with the car or a train ride are feasible; visitors from further away will probably be using air travel. Visitors from the United Kingdom can also travel by boat.
By plane
Schiphol Airport , near Amsterdam, is a European hub, and after London, Paris, and Frankfurt the largest of Europe. It is by far the biggest international airport in the country, and a point of interest in itself, being 4 metres below mean sea level (the name actually translates as Hollow of Ships). Travellers can easily fly in from most places of the world and then connect with The Netherlands' biggest airline KLM .
From Schiphol there are excellent railway connections: Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht and most large cities have a direct train service. The train station at Schiphol is located underground, under the main airport hall. The train is the quickest and cheapest way to get around in the Netherlands. Taxis are expensive: legal taxis have blue number plates, others should be avoided. Some hotels in Amsterdam, and around the airport, have a shuttle bus service.
Some budget airlines also fly to the Netherlands. Jet2.com , Easyjet , SkyEurope and other low-cost carriers serve Schiphol, providing a fairly economical way to city-hop to Amsterdam from other spots in Europe. Especially flying to/from the British Isles and the Mediterranian countries can be relatively cheap. It's important that you book as early as possible, as prices tend to get higher closer to departure.
Other international airports are Eindhoven Airport, Maastricht/Aachen Airport, Rotterdam Airport, and Groningen-Eelde Airport. These smaller airports are mainly attended by low-cost airlines. Eindhoven Airport and Maastricht/Aachen Airport are mostly used by Ryanair , while Rotterdam Airport is dominated by Transavia . Trains or a direct bus connection (in the case of Eindhoven Airport) are the best way to get to Amsterdam or any other town.
It is also possible to come to the Netherlands via airports lying in surrounding countries. Much-used airports are Düsseldorf Airport and Brussels Zaventem Airport.
By train
from France and Belgium
The Thalys high-speed train , which connects the Netherlands with France and Belgium, is a bit expensive, but if you book a return in advance or if you're under 26 or over 60 you can get good deals. It is also faster, normally cheaper and more convenient than flying.
For trips to Brussels or Antwerp it is usually cheaper - and almost as fast - to catch the Benelux train, which runs hourly from Amsterdam, via Schiphol, The Hague, Rotterdam, Dordrecht and Roosendaal. No seat reservations are required - just buy your ticket and get on board.
Between Maastricht and Brussels runs a new hourly intercity service called the Maastricht Brussel Express, which also stops at Liege. Maastricht-Liege takes around 30 minutes, Maastricht-Brussels takes about 1½ hours. Tickets can be bought at the stations or on-line on Express' website .
from Germany
The ICE high-speed train, runs from Frankfurt to Amsterdam, via Cologne, Düsseldorf, Arnhem, and Utrecht.
Intercity trains run from Berlin and Hannover to Amsterdam or Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, via Osnabrück, Hengelo, Deventer, Apeldoorn, Amersfoort and Hilversum.
There are also a number of regional trains from and to Germany:
- Between Groningen and Leer trains run every two hours.
- There are trains between Enschede and Münster every hour, also between Enschede and Dortmund every hour.
- Trains run hourly between Venlo and Hamm, via Mönchengladbach and Düsseldorf.
- Trains run every hour between Heerlen and Eschweiler / Stolberg (Rheinland) via Aachen.
Get lucky
Sometimes you can get lucky if someone booked a train ticket and then changed his or her travelling plans. Go to the national online sales-site Marktplaats (Marketplace) to check if there's an extra ticket available for your itinerary. Make sure to check the regular fares on the Nederlandse spoorwegen's official website before buying any tickets on Marktplaats.
By Coach
Eurolines are the main 'operator' for international coaches to the Netherlands. (In fact the name Eurolines is a common brand-name used by different operators). Services are limited: only a few main routes have a daily direct service. But this is the cheapest way to travel and you even get discount if your age is less than 25.
By car
The Netherlands can be reached from Belgium and Germany by road. Road access is very good in this country. The borders are open under the terms of the Schengen Agreement. Cars can be stopped behind the border for random checks, but this barely happens. There are car ferry services from the United Kingdom, see below. The UK is not part of the Schengen zone, and full border checks apply.
By boat
There are three ferry services from the UK
- Stena Line between Harwich and Hoek van Holland (Hook of Holland)
- DFDS Seaways between Newcastle upon Tyne and IJmuiden
- P&O Ferries between Kingston Upon Hull and Rotterdam Europoort.
More information, timetables and ticket prices for the North Sea ferries is available at Ferries To Amsterdam . is a combination ticket that includes the trainride from anywhere on the National Express East Anglia network (including London and Norwich) to Harwich, the ferry, and the trainride from Hook of Holland to anywhere on the NS (dutch railways) network. Rotterdam is also the second largest port in the world, and (in theory) a good place for Freighter travel.